Thad Whitfield had a strong opening round at Monday's U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, shooting 2-under 68
photo by Tennessee Golf Association
Signal Mountain’s Thad Whitfield had an impressive opening round in stroke play competition at the U.S. Junior Amateur on Monday, posting a score of 2-under 68 to land in a tie for seventh place.
The future Middle Tennessee State golfer’s round was delayed by an afternoon storm, but Whitfield took advantage of the softer conditions on the North Course at Oakland Hills Country Club in Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
After opening with a par, the McCallie School graduate birdied three of his next four holes to gain some early momentum. He added a fourth birdie on No. 7 that was sandwiched between a pair of bogeys, then closed his front nine in even par after a double-bogey on No. 9.
Whitfield’s inward nine featured birdies at 11,12, 14 and 16 that were offset by a pair of bogeys, resulting in a round of 35-33.
The eight birdies recorded by Whitfield on his eventful round was tied for the most among the 264 participants, equaling Japan’s Taishi Moto, who also shot 2-under 68.
Tyler Watts of Huntsville, Ala. and Mason Howell of Thomasville, Ga. are the first-day leaders after shooting 5-under 65. Nashville’s Blades Brown and Charlotte’s Mack Edwards are tied for third at 4-under 66.
Tennessee Junior Amateur champion Maddox Crowder (T81) shot 3-over 73, while incoming University of Tennessee freshman is T126 after an opening round of 5-over 75.
The top 64 scores after Tuesday’s final round of stroke play advance to match play competition starting on Wednesday. Whitfield is scheduled to tee off at 8:55 a.m. on the South Course.
To follow the live scoring, go to US Junior Amateur scoring.
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Paul Payne can be emailed at paulpayne6249@gmail.com